How Many Playing MMOs Today Would Still Play Them If They HAD To Pay?

VestigeGamer

F2P is the buzzword of the decade.  Cash shops rule and most do not have "must have" items in them.  I'm curious, though, if players would still play their MMOs if they were asked to pay to play them.  Are they "worth" a charged fee?  Would you still log in?

Damon

I prefer the subscription model. There are F2P games that I would not pay a subscription to play. However, I also don't play them when they are F2P. If the game is good enough, I'll play it (subscription or not).

Buccaneer

It depends on the game.  At the moment I'm subbed to SWTOR and before that I was subbed to EQ2.  I enjoy the games and the small fee is worth lifting some of the restrictions.  Other games like AA and Neverwinter I wouldn't touch with a barge pole.

hallucigenocide

VestigeGamer said:

hallucigenocide said:

if the fee wasn't unreasonable and i was enjoying the game sure i'd have no problem paying.

Looking at MMOs you play right now (hopefully enjoying them), how would you answer?  For example, would you pay a $15 monthly fee?  Nothing expensive.

if i was actively playing something atm then sure no problem. most of the games i've played have had a sub so it's not really anything new and strange to me.

i normally play 1 game at a time. had i been like mister DMKano i might have had a different opinion.

Kyleran

I'm firmly in the pay for my games, Loktofeit said it was hardwired into my generation or something, and I think he's right, I've never really enjoyed a F2P game ever, except for a DAOC freeshard, and I still always felt like I should be donating them money or something.

I am in the rare camp of only playing one MMORPG at a time (no other games) and having multiple accounts if it worthwhile to do so.  In DAOC back in the day I had 4 accounts, WOW I had 3 and currently in EVE I have 5 and am getting ready to open a 6th this weekend.

Even more important, I don't PLEX my accounts, I pay cash, one year annual subs for all 5 accounts, though this new one will likely be month to month as I start out.

So yes, I enjoy paying for my games, not even sure I can ever enjoy a F2P title.

Salvadorbard

I have no issues paying to play for a quality game. I paid $30 a month to play Avalon for years and years before buying a lifetime. I sub to Wow, etc. I don't see what the big deal is paying $10-30 a month for unlimited hours entertainment. inb4 disappointing content. To that I say: If you don't like it, don't pay OR play!

Theocritus

I paid for a handful of MMOs from 2000-2006.....I pretty much hit the wall at that point and decided I wasnt going to ever pay a monthly again......I spent way too much during that time span and now I just look for good free games or other options that arent so costly.

Madimorga

I keep TRYING to throw money at MMOs long term, but none hold my attention very long lately. I want to sub and stay subbed to one MMO for many happy years. I want to celebrate sappy anniversaries with touching, humorous gifts and mementos. I want to log in every day to stay connected and loaf around happily in my chosen game world's embrace. I want to enjoy the sweet, sweet reunion of a week apart after an internetless vacation.

I want to feel the same love I felt for my first MMO without going back to my first MMO (poor decrepit, unkempt old thing). I want a healthy relationship with my cherished MMO, I truly enjoy the commitment, monogamy, and even a reasonable expense.  Alas, the newcomers are not worthy.  They are not worthy!

Edit:  And why are they not worthy?:

Because they are gold diggers!
Because they are relentlessly shallow!
Because they try to boss me around and control my every choice and movement and who I hang out with and who I don't!
Because they are charmless copycats of each other who chase popularity rather than substance!
Because they are overly influenced by people with degrees in psychology and with MBAs.

Wizardry

So happens the only two mmos i am playing are both subscription ...EQ2 FFXi.

So there is no ifs ands it is happening right now.

raven7680

I'm currently playing TERA and will definitely be subbing very soon. I prefer to sub to a game even when it is F2P. That said one of the nice things about there being so many F2P mmos I have the chance to try as many as I want and when one hooks me I make it my home. 

rojoArcueid

I dont play a game because its free, i play it because i enjoy it. However, me enjoying a game does not mean i think it's worth a continuous subscription. On the other hand, i would totally buy the game if the company announce its becoming B2P with a smaller cash shop.

TyranusPrime

I prefer a subscription-based game personally, as paying a sub is pretty much what I've done since the beginning of MMOs.. I just assume it as part of the cost of keeping my habit running and adding new content.. Mind you, I don't mind a free-to-play now and then, but I abhor item malls, so its always hit or miss with me..

blackhawk432

Gardavsshade said:

I pay for most MMOs I play. Most time it is some sort of Sub, once in a while it's a cash shop coin card like TPs or CCs for example. I pay Prem for Wurm, pay for 2 accounts of LotRO, used to pay for SWTOR... but not anymore (Bioware you sank my Republic! No Soup for You!), I pay for the odds and ends MMOs I play every so often when I will play a MMO for a month or two or three. Soon an Indy project or two will be getting support from me as well, not because I think their MMOs are ready for prime time but to keep the creative wheels turning, and because I appreciate their efforts.

I believe it is fitting and respectful to compensate others for providing something I enjoy, such as a MMO Service, thus I win and they win. I also show by paying subscriptions that I am not some selfish twit that cares about only myself.

I am not a fan of Capitalism, far from it, but Devs don't make economic policy, they make games, and they need to eat like I do. Paying them for their work takes care of their needs as well as my own desires for good MMO entertainment.

We need so many more people like you.

*

Now back on topic, currently only paying for Runescape but if a few of the F2P games that I play would go P2P I would pony up some money for them.

Its easier to say no thanks to the big AAA titles but I'm much more careless with the indie games. They need the money to continue. 

Deivos

Considering I still do pay in many of them, I'd probably be ok with it.

skeaser

I prefer paying. When I play an MMO with an optional sub, I sub.

KenFisher

I don't really have an answer.  Some I gladly pay for.  Others, no way.

Depends on the game and the price.

Chrisbox

I've always played and supported sub based games, never dabbled with cash shops or b2p except for guild wars.  With a sub system in place you create a link with players/devs that gives immediate feedback.  Good patch comes out? Subs will rise.  Bad content comes out? Subs will fall.  

BMBender

The payment model to me has always been less important than the return I get in game play for the $ I spend.  I have largely been disappointed in f2p games in this respect.  As some have stated already in this thread subs do offer an immediate and concrete form of feedback that spans your entire player base.  With f2p they all seem to devolve into some form of whale worship that works for a time untill there is no  population left other than whales; and once they have no one left to show how uber they are, then they leave.

There is also the fact that a consistent revenue stream via subs lets a team budget more accurately in regards to re-investment than the often volitile nature of f2p revenue that often has wild swings week to week.  Even though often early in it's life f2p genrates more $ in absolute terms it's harder to budget around/predict quarter to quarter.  The afore mentioned whale phenomenon in f2p often masks the revenue feedback a sub game would get.  To often by the time an "issue" or series of them  raise to the level of affecting revenue the tide has already run it's course.  That uncertainty often leads to very conservative future spending on the game witch leads to a cycle of smaller and smaller content packages witch drive more people leaving witch drive even smaller re-investment.

Jemcrystal

Since most subs are $15 month I would rage quit.  But if someone charged $2 month and took out the Cash Shop completely then I would stay.  MMO with a shop and sub are greedy; it would have to come with it's own free game station for me to do that.

Loktofeit

VestigeGamer said:

Loktofeit said:

Currently playing and yearly subbed to Pirate 101.

Is that the only MMO you play?

Other than EVE, the only one I play regularly. 

Renfail

I haven't stopped subbing since 1999. 

Sometimes I pay for 3-5 subs at a time during a given month. The only times I don't sub are when I'm too busy with work or traveling. 

Gaming is my hobby and passion. I'm more than happy to pay developers for their time, since it gives me endless hours of enjoyment. 

I'm not a cheap entitlement brat. I'm more than happy to pay for my entertainment. 

fivoroth

I pay for my games, I rarely have played any games where I don't spend any money on them lol. Money is not an issue.

Sinsai

I always pay my way in life PERIOD.

That goes for my entertainment as well.

Mixx86

I am no parasite so I always pay, wheter I need to or not. If the game is good, they should get paid for their efforts. Right now I am running SWTOR, LOTRO and TSW. Good games all.

goboygo

I subscribe to every MMO I play so the answer is every one of them.

yaminsux

I would pay, period (given that I have the time to commit). I played many f2p to know that the "free" part is just an illusion and actually means "limited".

hallucigenocide

if the fee wasn't unreasonable and i was enjoying the game sure i'd have no problem paying.

VestigeGamer

hallucigenocide said:

if the fee wasn't unreasonable and i was enjoying the game sure i'd have no problem paying.

Looking at MMOs you play right now (hopefully enjoying them), how would you answer?  For example, would you pay a $15 monthly fee?  Nothing expensive.

Pepeq

Ask the over 4 million WoW players that question.  They pay mostly out of habit.  These people have never played any other MMO and likely will never do so.  It really has little to do with the game in and of itself... it really has to do with the individual's choice of how to spend their free time. 

VestigeGamer

Thanks all for the insightful answers.  I made a mistake when posting by choosing the "Question" option.  Oops.

The reason I asked was that instead of having a slightly fluid set number of players to draw from, millions of players now play tens to hundreds of games.  Each game gets to count those accounts, whether they pay anything or not.  10 games can say "We have 30 Million players." and none of them would be lying.

Is this a good "measure" of what is successful?  I guess that depends on how one defines "success."

kartool

Doesn't matter it's f2p, p2p, or sub-based - if the business model isn't ridiculous and I enjoy the game I'll pay.

VestigeGamer

kartool said:

Doesn't matter it's f2p, p2p, or sub-based - if the business model isn't ridiculous and I enjoy the game I'll pay.

Just for my own clarification, with F2P and B2P, do you frequent the cash shops?  If so, do you think you spend more or less than a usual sub fee?

FomaldehydeJim

I think I pay for all the mmos I play. I pay a sub for ESO, DCUO and P101; and also regularly buy items from their cash shops. I am of that school of thought that I should pay for the entertainment I enjoy and support it.

In fact certain F2P models have the opposite effect on me... for example, I think that Neverwinter is a fun game and I enjoy the foundry, but I refuse to play it because of the aggressive cash shop. If it was set up with an optional subscription and without gambling boxes, fail states on upgrading items, nickel and diming, and world announcements  when someone wins a shiny, then I would be playing and paying for it now.   

Madimorga

raven7680 said:

I'm currently playing TERA and will definitely be subbing very soon. I prefer to sub to a game even when it is F2P. That said one of the nice things about there being so many F2P mmos I have the chance to try as many as I want and when one hooks me I make it my home. 

I do agree the ability to try many games for free is a nice trend. It used to be that even limited free trials were rare. This does not come without its price, however.

ReaperUk

I find it difficult to understand why I was prepared to spend $75 per month on five accounts back in the day when I was a mayor and guild leader of a metropolis in SWG. I suppose I just accepted that's the way online games worked back then. LotRO was the first game I was playing when it went F2P and I already had a lifetime sub but I think every game I've played since either started as free to play/buy to play, or switched to that model soon after release when sub numbers fell.

I've got so many games available to me now that don't require a subscription, I wouldn't even consider  one that did. That payment model is just about dead for me now.

Aeolyn

raven7680 said:

I'm currently playing TERA and will definitely be subbing very soon. I prefer to sub to a game even when it is F2P. That said one of the nice things about there being so many F2P mmos I have the chance to try as many as I want and when one hooks me I make it my home. 

I would question, does it need to be f2p to "hook" you, or would a decent free trial be enough?

Gardavsshade

I pay for most MMOs I play. Most time it is some sort of Sub, once in a while it's a cash shop coin card like TPs or CCs for example. I pay Prem for Wurm, pay for 2 accounts of LotRO, used to pay for SWTOR... but not anymore (Bioware you sank my Republic! No Soup for You!), I pay for the odds and ends MMOs I play every so often when I will play a MMO for a month or two or three. Soon an Indy project or two will be getting support from me as well, not because I think their MMOs are ready for prime time but to keep the creative wheels turning, and because I appreciate their efforts.

I believe it is fitting and respectful to compensate others for providing something I enjoy, such as a MMO Service, thus I win and they win. I also show by paying subscriptions that I am not some selfish twit that cares about only myself.

I am not a fan of Capitalism, far from it, but Devs don't make economic policy, they make games, and they need to eat like I do. Paying them for their work takes care of their needs as well as my own desires for good MMO entertainment.

Loktofeit

Currently playing and yearly subbed to Pirate 101.